Elizabeth Topham Kennan (born February 25, 1938) is an American academic administrator who served as the 15th president of Mount Holyoke College from 1978 to 1995. She also served as president of the Five Colleges consortium from 1985 to 1994.[1] She had earlier taught medieval history at Catholic University in Washington, DC.
Elizabeth Topham Kennan | |
|---|---|
| 15th President of Mount Holyoke College | |
| In office 1978–1995 | |
| Preceded by | David Truman |
| Succeeded by | Joanne V. Creighton |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 25, 1938 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Michael Burns (actor, historian, horse breeder) |
| Children | Frank Alexander Kennan |
| Residence(s) | Danville, Kentucky |
| Alma mater | Mount Holyoke College Oxford University University of Washington |
| Profession | Professor of history and college president |
Education
editKennan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Kennan received her Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude in history from Mount Holyoke in 1960. Winning a Marshall Scholarship, she studied for a second bachelor's degree (subsequently Master of Arts) at St. Hilda's College, Oxford University, which she completed in 1962. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Washington in 1966.[1]
Career
editKennan was professor of medieval history at Catholic University from 1966 to 1978 before joining Mount Holyoke as president from 1978 to 1995. As president of Mount Holyoke, she was a proponent of single-sex education, stating to the Los Angeles Times in 1994: "Single-sex education for girls is a proven method for ensuring that they reach their fullest potential. I will be the first to call for coeducation at Mount Holyoke, the country's oldest women's college, when our society grants young women equal status in coeducational settings".[1] Kennan was also president of the Five Colleges consortium for nine years (1985–1994) while at Mount Holyoke. Upon her retirement from Mount Holyoke in 1995, the Kennan Faculty Chair and Lectureship was established.[2]
She has also served as a trustee of the University of Notre Dame, along with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the National Trust Community Investment Corporation, and on the oversight committee of the Folger Shakespeare Library. Among the corporate boards on which Kennan has served as director or trustee are Bell Atlantic, Shawmut Bank, and Putnam Investments.[3]
Mystery author
editIn 2000, Kennan co-authored the mystery novel, Overnight Float, with Jill Ker Conway (former president of Smith College). The novel is published under the pen name "Clare Munnings" and was their first venture into the mystery genre.
Personal life
editKennan has been married since 1986 to Michael Burns, whom she met as a professor of European history at Mount Holyoke. A former actor (Wagon Train and It's a Man's World) before his academic career, he is now professor emeritus. While at Mount Holyoke, the couple resided in Ipswich in Essex County, Massachusetts, and in the village of South Woodstock in Windsor County in eastern Vermont. Since 2002, they have resided in Boyle County near Danville, Kentucky, where they have restored the Cambus-Kenneth Estate, a Thoroughbred horse, cattle, and crop farm listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[4]
A Democrat like her husband, Kennan in 2006 contributed to the liberal interest group EMILY's List and to the successful re-election campaign of Democrat John Yarmuth of Louisville for Kentucky's 3rd congressional district seat.[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Mount Holyoke College President Elizabeth T. Kennan To Step Down on June 30, 1995". Mount Holyoke College news release. February 16, 1995. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
- ^ "Kennan Faculty Chair and Lectureship Established". Mount Holyoke College. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
- ^ "Elizabeth T. Kennan". Putnam's Board of Trustees Biographies. Putnam Investments. Archived from the original on 2011-07-15. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
- ^ "Three faculty members retire as emeriti". College Street Journal, Mount Holyoke College. May 24, 2002. Archived from the original on December 25, 2016. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
- ^ "Elizabeth Kennan - $3,750 in Political Contributions for 2006". campaignmoney.com. Retrieved April 5, 2017.